Kayaking Lake Boon

With the sun shining and having a rare day off I decided it would be a perfect day to go kayaking. Dan and I arranged a time with my brother and his family to check out Lake Boon. Lake Boon is a 163 acre lake located on the Hudson/Stow line.

Located a short distance from his house we loaded up the kayaks and their canoe. The lake is long and relatively narrow made up of four basins. 2 larger areas called Boon Pond and the Ramshorn Meadows as well as two swamp areas.  The meadows and swamp areas formed when a dam was built on Barton Road in Stow. The dam is a by-product of our industrial age.

We began our exploration from Dawes Lot located along Sudbury Road in the smaller of the two swampy areas.  From there we paddled along the shores of Ramshorn Meadows before passing through the Narrows into Boon Pond.

Many of the homes surrounding the lake are merely summer cottages while others have morphed into much more luxurious year round homes.  Historically Lake Boon was a hit amongst city dwellers who had once taken the train out to the area during the summer months and staying in lake side hotels. With the introduction of the car the Lake lost favor and today is surrounded only by homes.

With the sun beating down on us we all decided we would take a dip in the cool refreshing waters. I taught Dan and Grace how to exit their kayaks with out flooding it with water or capsizing. They each did a nice job. Chris pushed Aidan and Elyse off the canoe and into the lake with a splash. Those two are like fish they love the water so much.

We enjoyed the cool water and a chance to swim but after a short while we decided to get back underway. I quickly showed Dan and Grace how to reenter a kayak from the water without capsizing the boat while my brother taught Aidan how to reenter the canoe.

Once we were all back aboard we continued along heading for the dam. Having reached the other side of the lake we headed back. I could feel the sun since the dip in the lake had washed off my sunscreen but continued on.

The return trip seemed to go quicker and it wasn't long before we were back at the ramp. It was then we discovered Grace had taken her car key swimming and it was no lost to the depths of Boon Lake. We managed to get all three kayaks on the roof of my car and brought them back to my bothers while we decided what the best course of action would be. It all worked out after picking up her spare key and on the whole the day went great. Its a nice little lake to float around on and enjoy on a hot summer day.

Class A - License to Carry

As some of you may remember I began the process of getting my Class A License to Carry over a year ago. My adventure began after visiting a co-workers sportsman’s club where he officiates as the club safety officer. I took aim on the shooting range under his guidance and did exceptionally well with each of the 5 guns he had my try.

With the majority of my family already having their license I decided it was time for me to get mine. I started checking into what I needed to do to get it and I learned from another coworker that the process requires a few prerequisites before applying. As it turns out he was running the required NRA gun safety course at his sportsman’s club and suggested I enroll.

The 2-day class wrapped up the day before my birthday a year ago.  Since then I will admit it wasn’t a priority of mine to finish the process and I let the quest go idle. With renewed vigor this year I completed and submitted my application in mid-March. The waiting period in the City of Worcester is 2 months from submission to find out if your application was approved.

Waiting until Memorial Day as requested I called first thing and got the good news. Excited I swung down to the Police headquarters before heading into work to pick up my new license. Knowing exactly which gun I plan to purchase I have already ordered a new biometric gun safe and all the tools and equipment to keep it safe and in perfect operational condition.

With an expensive trip to China looming on the horizon I'll update you as soon as the budget allows the purchase of a firearm.

Destination China

Travel is a great way to reward an individual’s curiosities as it affords the traveler the luxury of experiencing wonderful new things and expanding their memories. Often even mundane activities are brought to life as if for the very first time.  With my unquenchable thirst to explore I couldn’t be more excited having booked a trip to what will be my 30th country, China!

I am looking forward to visiting some of the wonderful locations that make China a travelers dream. I am going to walk along the Great Wall built before the birth of Christ and stretching over 13,000 miles. Admire the 7,000 terracotta soldiers, horses and chariots buried with the first Emperor of China. Explore the world’s largest palace complex known as the Forbidden City which served as the home to 24 different emperors. Travel along the Huang Pu River in the City of Shanghai in one of their famous river boats. Enjoy the serenity of the Grand Canal, the longest canal in the world, in the city of Suzhou knows as the ‘Venice of the Orient’.

It’s going to be a jam packed always on the go trip with just 10 days to complete. I will also manage to log over 16,214 air miles along the way. It will be my second longest distance travel in a single trip. Second only to my trip to South Africa where I logged over 19,000 air miles.

I will update you on my plans and all the necessary todo's before I go. I already completed the VISA Application. I just need everyone else to complete theirs and then its a trip down to NYC and the Chinese Embassy.

Bunker Hill Monument : All 294 Steps and 221'

After a fun and exciting trip into the harbor on one of the Super Duck Tours we headed up the hill to a historically significant location known as Breeds Hill.  The battle is popularly known as the Battle of Bunker Hill while the majority of the fighting actually occurred on Breeds Hill.

While technically a defeat the American's inflicted such significant casualties against the British that it provided a necessary confidence boost to the colonialists. It is said that over 1000 British died while only a little over 100 American's died. This showed the inexperienced American's that their patriotic dedication could overcome superior British military might

The confusion in the name is a result of orders to build fortifications on Bunker Hill but the men built instead on the smaller Breeds Hill because it was closer to Boston. To honor the dedication of the Patriots a monument was built in 1794. It stood only 18 feet and made of a gilded wooden pillar.  In 1823 a group of prominent citizens decided to build a more permanent and significantly larger monument and formed the Bunker Hill Monument Association. They selected 40yo architect Solomon Willard. Construction began in 1827 and would take 16 years to complete.

The monument was not only a symbol of National Pride but also a feat of great engineering.  The first commercial Railway in America was built to transport the granite to build the monument from the quarries in Quincy. They also built a special hoist apparatus to life the 5-ton blocks into place.

19 Years after the Association formed and 16 years of construction the monument was dedicated by Statesman and orator Daniel Webster  on June 17, 1843 in the presence of the then President John Tyler and the last living veteran of the battle. The monument caps out at a height of 221'5". At its base the walls are 6' thick and at the top only 2' thick. At the top of the Obelisk is a 18' tall chamber with viewing windows. It has 294 steps with are each 8" tall. Admission is free but you must get tickets at the Adjacent Bunker Hill Museum before climbing the 196' to reach the viewing chamber. It was a fun experience and provided amazing views of the Boston skyline and the surrounding areas.

I'll admit that after racing to the top my legs were a giggly. As such I would recommend that you may want to pace your ascent to the top. It also didn't help that it was 89-degrees out.  It is a must do for anyone visiting the Charlestown area.

Live Comedy at The Historic Strand Theatre

Live comedy was alive and well last night at the Historic Strand Theatre in downtown Clinton, MA. A few times a year co-owners Rob & Bill bring local comics to the grand stage and only laughter ensues. This time was no different. With an eclectic mix of styles the comediennes kept the entire audience laughing from start to finish.

On this evening good looking, hyper energetic, host and funnyman Jesse Bickford started the show with a quick set of his own before introducing the first of the nights headliners. His witty repertoire of jokes about how the dating world has changed for the worse were light and humorous. His impressions were delightfully spot on and captured the moment. website

The first comedienne to take the stages is a teacher by day and comedian by night. Dave Lamb schooled the audience with his funny and engaging skit. As an IT guy I appreciated his skit about online security. "Passwords are ridiculous and are worth 90 points in scrabble" and his part about google being a more efficient was to search for porn. His joke about black people meets dating website. When he looked it up blackpeoplemeats.com he found a much different kind of website. website

David Rattigan is the ring leader of this group of comediennes. Operating the talent company that brought them all here he too is a funny guy. I loved his skit about Martha Burke who ran the protest at Augusta in support of women's right to join the club.  He went on to say how she inspired him to go home and grab his protest signs and visit the local Curves. website

The best comic of the night was Christine Hurley. website She is the mom everyone wishes they had. As a past finalist of Nick at Nights "Funniest Mom in America" contest she didn't disappoint. Her jokes focused on her life as a mother of 5 and wife to a local fireman. She tells the story of any mom raising that number of children and the hilarity of all the unusual things parents have to deal with. One of my favorite lines from her act was aimed at the mothers in the audience.

“I’m going to tell you ladies a little secret: You can mix Slim Fast with vodka,” she said. “First of all, it doesn’t curdle. Who knew? And second of all, all those condescending bitches at the bus stop can’t smell it on your breath.”

Her stories and views on motherhood and marriage are exactly what everyone is living through…people get it and love it and so did I.

I invite you all to attend one of the Strand's Comedy Nights so you can enjoy the hilarity of many of our local comics.

Glassblowing @ Luke Adams

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